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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. season — of the year
  6. scale — in music
  7. stem — to come from
  8. fall — to drop
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. fall — to drop
  12. lean — to bend
  13. lean — thin
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. cell — a phone
  21. scale — size or range
  22. season — in sport
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. fall — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com